With all the focus on whether MLS moving to a schedule that’s more in line with the international calendar is a good idea or not, one of the more pressing issues has been somewhat ignored: When to hold MLS Cup.
Black And Red United: Making Black Friday And MLS Cup Synonymous
The season, we already know, is going to have to be longer next season. There are going to be four more matches and the regular season is going to be 32 weeks long. With two more teams being added to the playoffs, those could extend the season as well.
Black and Red United’s Martin Shatzer has a suggestion: Move MLS Cup back a couple of weeks and hold it on Black Friday.
Think about it. Everybody is off work, everybody is looking for something to do, yet there are no sports on the calendar besides a few college basketball games, hockey games, and maybe one big college football game in the afternoon. The evening is essentially wide open. I was watching the Maryland Terrapins take on the powerhouse team that is the Elon Phoenix last night. I could have been watching MLS Cup instead.
There’s really only one problem with Shatzer’s suggestion: weather. As we saw this year, holding MLS Cup in places like Toronto is already tempting the gods. If MLS moves forward with the plan to start holding MLS Cups at home stadiums of the higher-seeded participant, pushing the game back into late November could be a recipe for even colder environments.
Night time temperatures in numerous MLS cities regular dip below freezing this time of year and many of them start seeing snowstorms as well.
If MLS were to make a move like this, continuing to have a host city may not be such a bad idea.
MLS is never going to move to a two-legged final, and home teams may get too much of an advantage. I’ve endorsed higher seeds hosting the final in the past, but tying MLS Cup to a permanent date is probably a better solution.
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